1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to diagnosis and treatment of a psychiatric disorder defined herein as P.R.I.C.E. Syndrome. More particularly, the invention relates to administering to a person having P.R.I.C.E. Syndrome an extended release composition of a therapeutically effective amount of an alpha-2 adrenergic agonist, such as clonidine or guanfacine.
2. Description of Related Art
When a psychiatrist is presented with a patient exhibiting one or more behaviors such as poor social skills, defiance, lack of patience, difficulty paying attention, ritualistic behavior and/or mood swings, where such behavior(s) interferes with normal functioning, the psychiatrist must first make a diagnosis before formulating a treatment plan. A patient having dysfunctional levels of any/some/all of the foregoing symptoms may, depending on the psychiatrist's professional judgment, be determined to have any of the following conditions: Pervasive Developmental Disorder (“PDD”) or Autistic Spectrum Disorder (“ASD”) such as Autistic Disorder, Asperger's Disorder, Rett's Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Schizophrenia or other Psychotic Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (“ADHD”), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (“OCD”), Hypomania in Bipolar Disorder, Intermittent Explosive Disorder, an Impulse Control Disorder, or a Personality Disorder.
Today, the psychiatrist's nomenclature, i.e., the criteria for psychiatric evaluation and classification is provided in the DSM-IV-TR (the “Diagostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders”), a periodically revised psychiatric “Bible” published by the American Psychiatric Association. The next revision of the DSM, the DSM-V, is currently scheduled to be published in late 2013.
The psychiatrist's professional judgment in rendering a diagnosis is largely informed by the criteria for various disorders set forth in the DSM. Thus, a psychiatrist presented with a patient exhibiting any such symptoms as those described above would consult the DSM in rendering a diagnosis. The diagnosis would, in turn, inform a treatment program. Whether a given patient is determined, for example, to have ADHD as opposed to Asperger's Disorder or Hypomania in Bipolar Disorder, depends on whether the patient's symptoms comport with criteria set forth for these conditions in the DSM. Proper diagnosis is critical since a wrong diagnosis will likely lead to an ineffective or even potentially harmful treatment program.
The DSM-IV-TR classifications for the disorders discussed above are as follows: